Jeff Blashill Watch: Steve Yzerman keeps mum on Detroit Red Wings coaching job

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What “very quickly" means to one person is not necessarily reflected in another person’s meaning.

The Detroit Red Wings’ season has been over since an overtime loss Saturday night in Columbus, and general manager Steve Yzerman still hasn’t shown his hand regarding Jeff Blashill’s coaching future. Last month, Yzerman said he’d sit down with Blashill “very quickly” after the season ended, but it has been two days and counting since the final horn.

Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill looks at the scoreboard in the second period on Thursday, April 15, 2021, at Little Caesars Arena.
Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill looks at the scoreboard in the second period on Thursday, April 15, 2021, at Little Caesars Arena.

Yzerman’s comments April 12 indicated he already knew what he was going to do: Extend Blashill’s contract, inform him his time with the organization is over — or perhaps tell Blashill there’ll be a new coach coming in, and offer him a different position, such as scouting.

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Blashill finished his sixth season behind the bench, guiding the Wings to a 19-27-10 record despite the lineup being ravaged by COVID-19 and injuries.

Since being promoted from the Grand Rapids Griffins job in 2015, Blashill has coached the Wings to a 172-221-62 record. He is well liked within the organization, and respected for his professionalism and calm demeanor. Blashill and Yzerman have a good relationship, with Yzerman often joining Blashill in his office after games at Little Caesars Arena to dissect the evening’s performance.

Still, this does offer an opportunity for Yzerman to bring in his own coaching staff. Blashill, 47, received a two-year extension mere weeks before Yzerman was named GM on April 19, 2019.

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The first weekday after a season finale traditionally is a time for players to clean out their gear from their lockers and gather for a team picture. But the team picture was snapped last week during a four-day break, and players already have begun scattering — Bobby Ryan, for example, said last week he'd be arriving in Idaho on Monday.

The question remains: Will Blashill be cleaning out his office — or settling in for a longer stint?

Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames. Read more on the Detroit Red Wings and sign up for our Red Wings newsletter. Her book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available via her e-mail.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings, Steve Yzerman still mum on coach Jeff Blashill